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On Monday, January 8, 2024, an explosion at a historic Texas hotel, Sandman Signature Hotel, in Fort Worth injured 21 people, one of whom was critically injured. According to authorities, the blast also destroyed the windows and left big pieces of the building's wreckage scattered across downtown streets.
There were numerous injuries recorded from the exposition near Houston Street. Following reports of the explosion in the city, firefighters raced to the scene. The authorities believe that a gas-related incident caused the explosion.
According to the Fort Worth Fire Department, Eleven people suffered serious injuries. The hotel building, the surrounding retail stores, eateries, and restaurants were all severely damaged and destroyed in the photos taken from the explosion site.
Meanwhile, once the photos and the videos of the Sandman Signature hotel explosion were uploaded on X (formerly known as Twitter), they immediately went viral. Social media users took to the comment section of @rawsalerts’s post to react to the entire thing.
Netizens react as the Sandman Signature hotel explosion injured many people
The Sandman Signature Hotel is situated approximately one block away from the Fort Worth Convention Centre in a bustling downtown neighborhood. A large explosion occurred on Monday, drawing large numbers of authorities and other law enforcement professionals to the area.
Firefighters have reported a major casualty situation, with windows blown out and a possible floor collapse within. Twenty-one people were injured, out of which 11 were wounded. Two of these 11 injured were said to be critically hurt, and one was allegedly in critical condition.
Authorities reported that rescue personnel discovered multiple people trapped in the basement of the 20-story hotel after the blast sent the doors and an entire wall portion onto the street in front of the building.
The helicopter footage from the area showed firefighters sifting through the debris that covered the pavement outside the Sandman Signature Hotel, which included broken glass, plasterboard, and bent metal.
Meanwhile, numerous witnesses claimed to have heard a huge explosion from kilometers away, which they later confirmed and reported to the authorities.
According to the officials, the Sandman Signature Hotel had more than 24 rooms at the time. The explosion occurred in the middle of the afternoon, and according to the authorities, they suspect a gas leak caused it.
Charlie Collier, 31, who was working in the area, addressed the blast in the hotel and informed The Associated Press,
“There was debris. There was insulation. There was office furniture”.
He claimed to have seen a big flash and heard what sounded like thunder.
He further said,
“Everything that was in the first couple floors of the building was blown out all over the street.”
As soon as the video and the pictures of the incident were uploaded on X by RAWSALERTS, netizens flooded the comment section of the post to express their opinion regarding the same.
As per the WFAA, there might have been a gas explosion in the Sandman Signature Hotel. However, the FWFD PIO has not verified that there was a gas leak. The Fort Worth Fire Department's Craig Trojacek stated that a restaurant had been under construction in the building.
However, he did not confirm that this was the location of the explosion. The source of the alleged gas leak near the hotel has not yet been isolated. The authorities are still looking into it.
Furthermore, a cordon was sent to the location, and police set restrictions on the area near the Sandman Signature Hotel. It has been suggested that people stay away from the region. It is still unclear how big a catastrophe occurred in downtown Fort Worth.
